One of the benefits of touring is that I am a pro at picking out hotels now. We stay in solidly lower middle of the line hotels – your two to three star types – which are also the types I’m most likely to frequent when traveling myself. This means that I’ve now spent 5…
In case you guys haven’t gathered, I am a total roadside attraction nut. You know how people obsessively quote movies? “Party on, Garth! Party on, Wayne!” Umm… I might’ve actually just had to Google that to get it right. I have a terrible memory, and I’m pretty reserved, but if you want to see me…
Venice: it’s one of the most sigh-worthy tourist destinations in the world, and on the bucket list of millions of people around the world. With its breathtaking architecture, notable shopping, and thousands of years of history and culture, Italy’s glamorous “sinking city” is a must-see destination for all ages and budgets. The glitterati with plenty…
Texas is a weird place (sorry, Texans), perhaps because of that, one thing they excel at it weird roadside attractions and I recently had a chance to stop by an old favorite again and show it to some new friends. If you’re Texas bound and heading through Amarillo anytime soon, be sure to swing by…
A lot of times, my lifestyle requires not committing to things until the last minute and the occasional bail out when plans are already partially underway, the person who has taken the brunt of this has been my best friend Shell. When I worked for the cruise line, we decided we were going to use…
So, I hate packing. This is really an understatement. Something about it makes me feel so overwhelmed, it’s actually ridiculous. I can manage a $13 million dollar theater, but trying to fill 2 suitcases and a book bag makes my head swim and I feel a strong urge to drink. If only my Hogwarts letter…
There are lots of things about traveling that are dangerous to your wallet – tons of hidden fees, the cost of eating out, trinkets and souvenirs – but I think the most treacherous part of the travel is the danger zone. The danger zone starts 3-5 days before you leave, when vacation mentality starts to…
As they say “and now for something completely different”- you may remember a review I wrote of Dust Tea, Dragons and Dingoes a few weeks ago by international business traveler R.F. Hemphill. That hilarious book recounts a lot of his travels and business stories and today he’s written a guest post about some hidden gems…
I spent five summers working on a cruise ship in Alaska. There are lots of things I think back on nostalgically now, but nothing makes me miss Alaska more than seeing pictures on Facebook of my friends eating at Tracy’s King Crab Shack. My love for Tracy’s runs deep! Keep reading here at TravelBlueBook.
Juneau, the capital of Alaska and brief home of Sarah Palin, is a must see stop on any Alaskan adventure. As part of the inside passage into Alaska, it has slightly better temperatures than lots of other cities in America’s biggest state, making summer a great time to check it out. Read more here.
I really love my change jar and I’ve been thinking about it a lot lately. A lot of the little things in life that I enjoy are attached to that jar – but with no strings. Change jar money has always been “extra” money to me. It exists outside of my budget, because there’s no…
So you’re finally going on that dream vacation to the Caribbean or Europe or some random river cruise in the middle of nowhere. It’s going to be amazing. Maybe you splurged on a high end, inclusive line – if you did, these tips probably won’t help you much – but if you’re a financially savvy…
I don’t know about you, but as an American, flying NEVER seems like the cheapest way to travel. That’s why when I moved to England, I was so surprised to hear about everyone going on “holiday” all over Europe all the time. I think this is because America is so large, unless you live on…
For as long as I can remember, my extended family has gone on camping trips. My dad is the youngest of nine, so there were always plenty of cousins to hang out with and piles of mischief to get up to. There was the memorable year when I ran full speed into a partially buried…
One thing the Midwest really has going for it is weird roadside attractions (among other things, the Midwest is actually really cool. I mean, they have tumbleweed too!). Maybe it’s the long distances between towns. Maybe it’s something to do with all the farming. I really have no idea. But a lot of the strangest…
One thing I really miss now that I’m sort of settled in NYC for a while is traveling on a regular basis – even when I was with the circus, I had my car out on tour and would drive from city to city each week. Since this got expensive real quick, I realized that…